65 and sunny on Saturday, obviously the only thing for new residents of Jersey to do is hit the shore.  We headed south with a mission to check out the northern half of the famous beaches of the shore.  Talk about spring fever at it’s finest – only a bunch of MN kids would find enjoyment hanging out on the beach when it is windy and MARCH.  Our only rule was to stay within 1 1/2 hours from home.

We started out our day at Sandy Hook Lighthouse where we climbed 9 stories and learned a ridiculous amount about lighthouses.  We love free tours.

We left there and headed south along the shore until we reached Seabright, NJ.  We had a fantastic meal of Orange Crushes and Fish Tacos at Woody’s.  We will be back there for sure.  The town itself was super cute and would be a great place to spend a beach day because it’s only about an hour from our house.

Once we left our new favorite shore town, we realized that Seaside Heights was only about 20 miles down the shore, so off we went.  Yep, we visited the boardwalk that saw numerous arrests of the Snook monster.  We turned our classy little afternoon of historical tours and little classic beach towns into our own personal spring break.

It was more of a joke when we reached town, but the boardwalk is actually quite fun – especially when there’s no one there but the skateboarders and surfers.  We enjoyed a $2 beer and the largest slice of pizza I’ve ever seen.  Then, we took some ridiculous pictures and headed back to the lovely Garden State Parkway.

I wish I was intoxicated when I took the classy picture with the horse, but I’m sure my time will come.  I’m incredibly happy that this is all within driving distance.  If you asked me 12 months ago, I would have told you that the Jersey Shore was not on my list of places to travel, but when you can drive – why not?

So my final verdict on classy or trashy?  It’s got a little of everything.

I love the East Coast, I love living across the river from NYC, I love being a Jersey girl (even if I don’t quite fit the part yet) and this weekend proved all of that for me all over again.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day to everyone.  Cheers.